Finally, it will be the company that is currently managing the operation of the Las Ventas bullring that will ensure that everything continues to function until the tender, currently underway, is awarded. On June 1, the management of the Bullfighting Affairs Center issued an order to execute, by emergency means, a public service concession contract for the exploitation of the Las Ventas bullring, and order the current successful bidder , Plaza 1, to be in charge of this service.
Plaza 1 is formed by the Temporary Union of Companies Simon Casas Production, SAS and Nautalia Viajes S. L.. Its continuity, clarify from the Center for Bullfighting Affairs, “will be limited to what is strictly essential in the objective and temporary scope, so that the services object of the contract until the formalization of the new file that is in tender takes place.
The competition for the exploitation of the Las Ventas bullring has faced more obstacles than could be foreseen. Two appeals were filed against the specifications, the second of which was rejected by the Administrative Court, which sentenced the plaintiff to a fine for appreciating bad faith in his actions.
On May 13, 2022, the Contracting Committee of the Ministry of the Presidency met to see the documentation provided by the companies interested in the tender. Of the four submitted, three were submitted to the contracting authority, which meet all the requirements: first, Plaza Ventas 237 S.L.; in second place, the UTE Toreo Arte y Cultura BMF, S. L. and Fusión Internacional Tauromaquia S. L.; and in third place, the Simón Casas Production, SAS and Nautalia Viajes S. L. joint venture. The fourth company that presented itself, Gestión Taurolidia S. L. –the one that filed the second appeal– «has not provided the required documentation within the deadline, for which it is excluded from the tender”, said the Ministry.
From the notification of this decision, which took place on May 16, the three companies have 25 days to present their offers. Afterwards, the administration must assess them, which will lengthen the term even more.
The solution that has been adopted so that Las Ventas can continue with its activity while the next tender is pending is this exploitation service concession contract processed by the emergency procedure. They understand in the Ministry of the Presidency, directed by Enrique López, that «the necessary legal elements that are included in article 120 of Law 9/2017, of November 8, on Public Sector Contracts, concur, due to the fact that the current situation It represents a serious danger from the economic and social point of view.
“Not ensuring the continuity of this contract would mean the abolition of this service concession and as a consequence the closure of the Las Ventas bullring,” they warn. That is why it will be executed to “avoid any economic damage to all the sectors involved.”
